Fort Worth weekly gazette. [volume] (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1882-1891, 1887-09-09
PROHIBITION ADDRESS.
Address Of the Prohibition Executive
COmmittee-The state Campaign
Reviewed.
i Circular Letter Prepared by the Sub
Committee Recently Appointed at
the Waco Gathering
10 IL PIohibltlonlg.g Of Texas


WACO, TEX, Aug. 22.-At g calico
session Of the prohibition state central
committee, held in this city, the lt.t
inst, the executive commj.te was di.cct-
ed TO issue IN address to our friends
I throughout the state.
By special resolutions certain instruc.
tons were imposed on US which are
herein faithfully observed.
As matter OF history we recite, 1rst
Of ali, the following facts:
For more than thirty years the pro-
priely OF prohibiting tae liquor tr2nic
for beverage purposes, has been agitat9d
in Texas
BY the constitutional convention Of
. 1875, prohibition by LEGAL option was in
corp0rated il Our organic iaw. Owing
largely 10 faulty legislation, this precinct
and county prohibition, wherever
adopted, has been more or less in
effective.
BY our last Legislature, and uDon the
recommendation Of Governor Ross, there
vas submitted to q vote OF the people Of
the whole state, an amendment TO the
constitution restricting the liquor tIatfic
ia both manufacture and sale So medical,
mechanical, scientific and sacramento
purposes. AT this time there were three
political parties in the state. The d mo
ClallC party, with an ul0rCEen prestige Of
/ victory for many years had G ma lrity over
al competitors Of al leSst l@5 GOO. The
/ Republican party, Gggresa;iI2 IL national
elections nearly 100000, WGs composed
ma!nlY, not exclusively, OF Germans and
. negroes. Tie third pArty, Prohibition
lists, recently organized, numbered less
/ than &c, coo ii the stzte.
I The SHE'D party, eCCordiCg to the state
ment Of It's standard bearer, Wss organ
/ iz3d because successive Democratic Leg
Islatures had refused, upon proper petit
ton, to submit the question Of prOhibi-
ton 20 8 vote OF tn~peOple IL a nOn.pRr-
tissn election.
Tee Dtm0Cratc legislature, VIII h
ilally submitted the amendment 20 2 vote
OF The people, evidently desired the cleo
ton 70 be nOn-paTtisGl. They separated
it FROM al others, placing II at time
when no Offices were involved. As en-
earnest of their good faish 5 large num-
Der OF them signed 2 protest against az
effort 20 drag the DenOCrHtiC party into
the canvass.
The three political parties, so fsr as
cry Official action goes, accepted the
issue in this form. Their several state
executive committees positively rcfus, q
to issue csI, or bloT trumpet None
of them had 8 flag or : commission
IN the field. No part Of their
distinct political machinery was en-
/ ployed, Whoever during the canvass
shouted the slogan OF eny enc Of these
/ politica! organizations was g traitor 10
his party. He was man unsent and ua-
au horned. By the laws of war on The
land he merited the fate OF t3gless
guerilla. On the high seas his craft
would have sunk as q pirate.
i That spirit of rebellion which leads
/ ore to speak without authority for an or
4 gsniz4tion committing it to q policy
/ where it has been siient,will prompt MIN,
/ under adequate TEN otEtiOn, TO speak
/ against its direct voice.
/ Such being the conditions under which
/ the amendment Wss submitted, the Pro
/ hiaftiOnists came together IN Convention
/ pursuant TO strictly non-partisan call,
/ and by every emphasis possible TO the
! language Of honorable men, dis5voWc6
/ warfare on eny existing political party
! and'ary purpose whatever 10 form ne q
oneg.
They entered tie campaign ard prose
/ Cutef,i. unto the end Is citizens OF Texas,
! irreSpeetiv,aDf race, political affiliations
or church relations.
Democrat, Republican, third p&rtv Pro
hibitionist, white man and negro, native
American and German, Christian and in
, ii lei, preacher and layman, ell occupied G
place on the central committee, but none
! because o. these distinctions or relations.
( The only tests were efficiency and Citi-
zership. In the history OF the world
there has never been more honest can
ysss than they made.
/ NJ appeal was ever made to any class
! or organization, SO such, whether moral,
( religious or otherwise.
. No temptation aud 10 prOyoCation
caused them to swerve one hairs breadth
from this policy. Msntully, courageous
( ly and leroiCslly they fought their battle
out OF this line 2gsinst the most dreadful
odds.
They fought their bsttle and lost it.
/ Their white fl:g went down n disastrous
defeat. Their hopes gre buried unGer an
overwhelming adverse majority.
In view Of this decisive overthrow the
/ following questions arise;
! What is the significance of this 1000
majority? Was cur cause wrong, and
/ Shall we repent ard apologize? o., TIE
cause being right, was our method
wrong: What are We GoW TO DO?
/ TIE thousands who so Loyalty and CT
/ Enthusiastically followed the white flag,
/ look 10 their central committee for c0un-
! sci. in answering these questions we
should neither consult our fears no. be
/ prompted by the sting CT defeat.
The ungenerous taunts of cur adver.
ssries II the flush of their victory, nor
their threats Of prescription in The future
should be allowed to provoke Us mo IN
wisdom. Soberly, dispassionstely and
sincerely we should address ourselves to
the issues now before US. The highest
and puress wisdom that ever illumine1
! this world has been learned in the hour
OF defeat. A1d at such time has the
! sublimest courage immortelized IN his
! tory been evinced. What then does this
! great snti-prohibitiOn majority signify?
It says, decislvelY, thsE the people OF
| TeX5s do no low want that propose i
! prohibition amendment Incorporated in
| the constitution. We made our appeal
10 the people, They decided against Us.
As good citizens we ought TO submit:
-. gracefully and accept mantully and cheer
fully the decision we invoked In the
language OF Jefferson; "An essential
principle Of cur government is
| absolute 8cquiescence in the decisions of
the msj0rity-the vital principle CT re-
/ pu5lics, from which there Is 10 appeal
/ but 10 force, the vi!sl principle and i'm
! mediate parent CT despotisn."
This majority signifies even more,
/ which re ought to accent. When & pro